Gay Rights: Is it time to Boycott Firefox?

[Mycroft]

Today, users of the dating website OKcupid were asked not to access the website using Mozilla Firefox. OKCupid told users: "Mozilla’s new CEO, Brendan Eich, is an opponent of equal rights for gay couples," the message reads. "We would therefore prefer that our users not use Mozilla software to access OkCupid."

I, for one, shall switch to chrome! For Freedom!

 

[HonestJoe]

My instinct is that this is more about free advertising for the website that any real socio-political considerations.

Also, anyone who actively recommends it's users to switch to Internet Explorer has no place running a website.

 

[Iti oj]

But I hate ie and chrom. Links please

 

[Mycroft]

But I hate ie and chrom. Links please

You could try Opera.

 

[Revoltingest]

Today, users of the dating website OKcupid were asked not to access the website using Mozilla Firefox. OKCupid told users: "Mozilla’s new CEO, Brendan Eich, is an opponent of equal rights for gay couples," the message reads. "We would therefore prefer that our users not use Mozilla software to access OkCupid."
I, for one, shall switch to chrome! For Freedom!

Meh.....switching would change nothing.
I'll stick with Firefox.
I once tried Chrome. It sucked.
But next week the gadflies would find a reason to boycott them too.

 

[dyanaprajna2011]

Thankfully, I had already switched from Firefox to Chrome some time back. I think it would be funny to see all these businesses start to lose business because of denying service to homosexuals.

 

[Breathe]

I, for one, shall switch to chrome! For Freedom!

Enjoy being spied on.

You could try Opera.

But Opera sucks.

Torch is okay.
I've heard good things about Pale Moon, too. I found it aíght.
Midori is eh.
There's Maxthon, too, but I've not used it.
Comodo internet browser is alright, too. Like Chrome.

 

[Revoltingest]

OKCupid Blocks Firefox Users Over Mozilla CEO Brendan Eich's Anti-Gay Stance
I plan to boycott OKCupid now because they advocate switching to Microsoft.
I oppose crappy software made by dull & domineering companies!

 

[misanthropic_clown]

I don't think continuing to use Firefox amounts to an endorsement of the personal opinions of its executives.

 

[Iti oj]

I don't think continuing to use Firefox amounts to an endorsement of the personal opinions of its executives.

perhaps that true but boycotting certainly says i disagree with him./ this is important. America is in cultural civil war.

 

[LuisDantas]

I don't think continuing to use Firefox amounts to an endorsement of the personal opinions of its executives.

Make that two.

 

[misanthropic_clown]

perhaps that true but boycotting certainly says i disagree with him./ this is important. America is in cultural civil war.

True, publicity is almost always a good thing and as a temporary measure a boycott can raise awareness about an issue.

But, from what I read, Mozilla is a pretty progressive company. The only potential "benefit" of this action would be to cause embarrassment to the CEO because of his personal beliefs, and though not necessarily a bad thing this would (I imagine) be far outweighed by the risk to livelihood of Mozilla's employees. In addition, I think competency at your job should be the primary concern in the workplace, and the idea of policing against private beliefs which have nothing to do with the job at hand strikes me as an unappealing one.

 

[technomage]

While Eich personally may support things like Prop 8, the Mozilla corporation fully supports marriage equality.

 

[nazz]

Today, users of the dating website OKcupid were asked not to access the website using Mozilla Firefox. OKCupid told users: "Mozilla’s new CEO, Brendan Eich, is an opponent of equal rights for gay couples," the message reads. "We would therefore prefer that our users not use Mozilla software to access OkCupid."

I, for one, shall switch to chrome! For Freedom!

If I were to boycott something based on considerations like these I'd have to boycott everything. Besides Mozilla is non-profit so a boycott won't really impact them that much.

 

[Badran]

Just for clarification, is this the known extent of the CEO's opposition to equal rights for gay couples:

Eich donated $1,000 in 2008 to the campaign supporting California Proposition 8, which was recorded in a public database with Mozilla's name attached as his employer.[12] This reached public notability in March 2012, being controversial in the tech sphere[13] and the gay press both in the US[14] and internationally,[15] and the Twitter reaction itself achieving press noteworthiness.[16] Controversy over the donation again reached US and international news when he became CEO of Mozilla in 2014 and a number of employees asked him to step down while others called for a boycott of the company.[17][18][19][20][21] In response to speculation about Eich's appointment, Mozilla released a statement on March 29 re-affirming their support for LGBT equality.[22]

I ask because, if the above is the extent of the issue, then i'm not sure that a boycott is necessarily a reasonable thing to do here. If a business was owned by people who opposed equal rights, used their business/brand and/or their social status based on it to promote against equal rights, and so forth, i'd think a boycott is necessary.

On the other hand this is a non-profit organization which Eich only represents a branch of, and the organization as a whole states it's support for LGBT equality. Further the extent of Eich's opposition is fairly limited and personal, rather than relying on his status as an employee for Mozilla. So like i said, if this is all there is to the issue, i don't see a need for a boycott.

 

[Revoltingest]

Just for clarification, is this the known extent of the CEO's opposition to equal rights for gay couples:



I ask because, if the above is the extent of the issue, then i'm not sure that a boycott is necessarily a reasonable thing to do here. If a business was owned by people who opposed equal rights, used their business/brand and/or their social status based on it to promote against equal rights, and so forth, i'd think a boycott is necessary.

On the other hand this is a non-profit organization which Eich only represents a branch of, and the organization as a whole states it's support for LGBT equality. Further the extent of Eich's opposition is fairly limited and personal, rather than relying on his status as an employee for Mozilla. So like i said, if this is all there is to the issue, i don't see a need for a boycott.

Indeed, the boycott might be seen as harmful to gay rights.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

If OKCupid blocked access through Firefox, I find such control to be far more offensive than the CEOs position. It's not like the usage of Firefox contributes to anti-gay movements, such as like some other companies that donate profits. I may not agree with him, but I'd rather disagree with him than try to force him into compliance.

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

If I were to boycott something based on considerations like these I'd have to boycott everything. Besides Mozilla is non-profit so a boycott won't really impact them that much.

Same! I'm sticking to Firefox. I've been using it for years and none of the other browsers stack up, to me.

 

[dyanaprajna2011]

I'd like to hear what IE users think, but I guess we'll have to wait a year to see what they have to say.

 

[dust1n]

Um, well he isn't CEO, as of today. So, boycott, lifted! Thank goodness we weren't in Montgomery prepared to boycott our only means of transportation for over a year.

By the way, talk about chilling a career opportunity over $3,100 hundred dollars spent on political contributions.